Broker Website Not Showing in Google? What to Check First
This article is by Australia's #1 Mortgage Broker SEO Agency, we've helped brokers generate over $500M in new leads through Google and AI-search. We can help you too, simply book a call here.
You've built a website, added your services and put your name out there. But when you search for yourself the way a client would, your site is nowhere to be found. It's frustrating, and it's costing you enquiries you don't know you're missing.
The good news is that most of the reasons a broker's website doesn't show up in Google are fixable. They're not mysteries. They're gaps between what your site is and what Google needs it to be.
At Copyburst, we work with brokers across Australia on mortgage broker SEO, Google Business Profiles and AI search, and this is one of the first things we look at when a broker comes to us. Below, we'll walk you through the most common reasons and what to prioritise first.
Key takeaways
- Google can't rank a page it hasn't been able to find and read.
- Your pages need to clearly answer what borrowers are actually searching for.
- Competition from established local brokers is often the real reason you're invisible.
Why isn't my mortgage broker website showing in Google?
Your website isn't showing in Google because one or more of three things is missing: Google can't find or read your pages, your pages don't clearly match what borrowers search for, or other broker sites in your area are better answers to those searches right now. Most broker sites that don't rank fall into one of these categories. The fix depends on which one applies to you.
Has Google actually found your site?
The first thing to check isn't your content or your competitors. It's whether Google has been able to find your pages at all. A site that launched recently, moved to a new domain or was set up with the wrong settings can be invisible to Google without you realising it.
The simplest check: type site:yourdomain.com.au into Google. If nothing comes back, Google either hasn't found your site yet or something is blocking it. A brand new site typically takes a few weeks to appear; an older site that's suddenly missing is a different problem.
The settings issue is more common than it sounds. Some website platforms have a "discourage search engines" option that's easy to leave switched on by accident. If that's ticked, Google will stay away. It's a one-click fix once you find it.
| Expert tip Type site:yourdomain.com.au into Google and count how many pages come back. If the number is much lower than the pages you know you have, or zero, that's your starting point. Copyburst checks this as part of every broker SEO audit we run. |
Do your pages actually answer what borrowers search for?
Getting found is step one. Being relevant to the search is step two. A broker website that has a homepage, an about page and a contact form isn't giving Google much to work with. Borrowers search for specific things.
They type "refinance broker near me", "mortgage broker for self employed" or "first home buyer broker" into Google, not just "mortgage broker". If your site doesn't have pages that directly answer those searches, Google has no reason to show it. The brokers ranking above you almost certainly have pages built for each of those client types.
- Refinancers: many borrowers rolling off fixed rates are searching now. A page that speaks directly to them converts better too.
- First home buyers: one of the highest-search client groups. They have lots of questions and they're searching for answers before they pick a broker.
- Self-employed borrowers: a niche with real search volume and fewer brokers competing for it, especially outside capital cities.
- Investors: a distinct search with different questions. A page built for them signals that you understand their situation.
“When we look at broker sites that aren't ranking, the pattern is almost always the same: one or two pages doing a job that needs a dozen. The homepage is being asked to rank for refinancers, first home buyers and investors all at once, and it can't do any of them well.”
Adam Maynard · Founder, Copyburst · Chat to Adam →
Google's guidance is clear that it aims to reward content made to help people, not to game rankings. A page for refinancers that genuinely explains the process, what to watch for and how to get started does both: it helps the borrower and it gives Google something worth ranking.
| Mortgage broker SEO Need help with ranking above the broker next door? We help mortgage brokers get found first in Google, Google Maps and AI search.
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What does the competition in your area actually look like?
Sometimes your site is set up correctly and has relevant pages, but you're still not showing up. That's usually a competition problem, not a technical one. The brokers ranking in your area have often been building their online presence for years.
Say you're a broker who recently set up independently after leaving an aggregator. Your site is new, your reviews are sparse and the broker ranking above you has a five-year-old domain, forty reviews and pages for every loan type. Google uses links, mentions across the web and your website's overall strength as signals of prominence, according to Google's own local ranking guidance. The newer, thinner site loses that comparison, for now.
Here's what to do first in that situation:
- Build your service pages: one page per loan type and client group, each answering the search a borrower would run. Don't leave the homepage to do all the work.
- Set up your Google Business Profile: complete, accurate and linked to your website. This is how you get into the local results shown with the map, which shows up ahead of the organic results for most "broker near me" searches.
- Ask every settled client for a review: no incentives, no cherry-picking. Google's own guidance says more reviews and positive ratings can help your local ranking.
| Expert tip Search "mortgage broker" plus your suburb as a first home buyer would, on your phone. Look at what the top three results have that your site doesn't: more pages, more reviews, a stronger Google Business Profile. That gap tells you exactly where to start. Copyburst builds out that gap for brokers as part of our SEO work. |
Which issues matter most and in what order?
Not every fix is equal. Some issues stop Google finding your site entirely; others just slow your progress. The table below shows the most common reasons a broker site doesn't appear, what each one affects and what good looks like.
| Symptom | Likely cause | First fix |
|---|---|---|
| Site returns zero results for site:yourdomain.com.au | Search engine access blocked, or site is too new | Check platform settings; turn off "discourage search engines" if it's on |
| Homepage shows but no other pages do | Inner pages aren't linked from anywhere on the site | Link every service and about page from the main navigation or homepage |
| Site appears for your business name but nothing else | No pages built for what borrowers actually search | Add service pages for each loan type and client group |
| Ranking on page two or three but not page one | Established competitors have stronger sites and more reviews | Improve existing pages, build reviews, earn mentions on reputable sites |
| Not in the local results shown with the map at all | No Google Business Profile, or profile is incomplete | Set up or complete your profile, link it to your website, start asking for reviews |
The local results shown with the map (the Map Pack) and the standard search results are two separate things, and you need to be visible in both. A borrower sitting at home at 9pm looking for someone to help with a refinance gets the Map Pack results first on their phone. If you're not there, that enquiry goes to whoever is.
“The first thing we tell a broker who isn't showing up is to stop adding new content and start by finding out whether Google can read what's already there. Fixing that one thing has moved sites onto page one faster than anything else we do.”
Adam Maynard · Founder, Copyburst · Chat to Adam →
Does your website work properly on a mobile phone?
Google uses the mobile version of your website when it decides where to rank you. That's documented in Google's own technical guidance. So if your site loads slowly or is hard to use on a phone, it affects your rankings, not just your user experience.
A broker with a desktop-only site, or a site where the phone number isn't a tap-to-call link, is losing clients before they even make contact. Borrowers searching on their phone expect to tap a number and get through immediately. If they have to zoom in, scroll sideways or wait more than a couple of seconds for the page to load, most of them will go back and try the next result.
| Expert tip Pull up your website on your own phone as if you're a first home buyer finding it for the first time. Is it fast? Is the phone number one tap away? Is the page easy to read without zooming? If you hesitated on any of those, that's what a borrower experiences too. Copyburst builds broker websites that pass these checks as part of every SEO plan we run. |
What's the catch with fixing all of this yourself?
None of the individual fixes are complicated in isolation. The catch is that most brokers find the issues are layered: the settings look fine, but the pages aren't right; the pages look right, but the profile isn't linked correctly; the profile is complete, but the website isn't strong enough to support the local ranking. Fixing one thing without the others doesn't move the needle much.
There's also the time question. Google's guidance from Maile Ohye at Google Search Central notes that SEOs generally need four months to a year to implement improvements and see potential benefit. That's not a reason to delay, it's a reason to start with the right diagnosis so you're not spending months fixing the wrong thing.
And as Google itself says, no one can guarantee a number one ranking on Google. Any agency or freelancer who promises you a specific position is making a promise they can't keep. What a good SEO partner can do is find what's stopping you, fix it in the right order and show you how rankings and enquiries are moving over time.
| Mortgage broker SEO Need help with ranking above the broker next door? We help mortgage brokers get found first in Google, Google Maps and AI search.
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What else do brokers ask about websites not showing in Google?
Why is my website showing for my business name but nothing else?
Your site is findable, but it doesn't have pages that match what borrowers search for beyond your name. You need pages built around the searches your clients actually run, like loan types, client situations and your area, so Google has a reason to show you for those queries.
Should I leave my aggregator website and build my own?
It depends on what you can control. Aggregator sites often rank well because of the group's domain strength, but you're building their presence, not yours. Your own site lets you build pages around your specific clients, your area and your services, and you keep that asset if you move.
Will I lose rankings if I move to a new website?
There's always some fluctuation when a site moves. Google's own guidance says to use permanent redirects from every old URL to the new one and to keep them in place. Done properly, most rankings recover. Done without redirects, you can lose them entirely. Plan the move carefully before you launch.
How does Copyburst work out why a broker's site isn't ranking?
We start with an audit that checks whether Google can find and read your pages, what searches your site is and isn't appearing for, what your competition looks like in your area and what gaps exist in your content and your Google Business Profile. From there we prioritise what to fix first.
Can Copyburst rebuild my website as part of an SEO plan?
Yes. We build broker websites as part of our SEO work, so the site is structured from the ground up around what borrowers search for. The pages, headings, content and navigation are all built to rank, not just to look good. It's the same plan, not two separate projects.
Your next steps
Start with the site:yourdomain.com.au check. If your pages are coming back, the problem is most likely relevance or competition. If they're not, fixing access is your immediate priority before anything else. Either way, the Google Business Profile is worth setting up or completing in parallel: it's a separate ranking system and a fast way to appear for "broker near me" searches in your area while the website work catches up. To see what this would look like for your brokerage, book a free strategy call.
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Sources and further reading
This article provides general information about SEO, AI search and digital marketing for mortgage and finance brokers. It is not credit assistance, financial, legal or tax advice, and does not take into account your business circumstances. Search, ranking and lead outcomes vary and are not guaranteed. Figures are sourced from the organisations named and were current at the time of writing.